I'm the founder of Prisonology.com, which is a web-based product to help defendants prepare for prison. I hope you never need it! I write on white-collar crime and try to provide a different perspective than that of the mainstream media. I co-authored "Stolen Without A Gun" with Neil Weinberg, former Executive Editor Forbes Magazine (now a Reporter for Bloomberg). On a good day, I'll be talking with some bright defense lawyers or writing for Forbes.

12/18/2012 @ 7:32PM134,715 views

Anonymous' Hackers Target Westboro Baptist Church After Protest Plans

In a showdown that rivals Predator vs. Alien, the hacker group Anonymous has set its sights on bringing down the hate group Westboro Baptist Church.

Westboro, whose members are more at home conducting despicable protests at the funeral processions of U.S. military servicemen, announced that they were going to have similar protests at the funerals of the victims of Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre. In a strike to wound Westboro, the activist group Anonymous hacked the names, phone numbers, and social security numbers of numerous people it said are members of Westboro Baptist Church, which is based in Topeka, Kansas. The data dump also included the names of multiple members’ children and grandchildren. According to Information Week, the Anonymous attack was documented in a YouTube video (available here), which informed Westboro of the hit coming its way. “Your downfall is underway. Since your one-dimensional thought protocol will conform not to any modern logic, we will not debate, argue, or attempt to reason with you.” Instead, Anonymous promised to wage a sustained assault that would “progressively dismantle your institution.”

Anonymous also claimed to have changed Westboro spokeswoman Shirley Phelps-Roper’s PC desktop wallpaper to gay porn, and filed a death certificate in her name, which would prevent her from using her social security number. Anonymous don’t play!

Meanwhile, on Monday Phelps-Roper’s Twitter account was taken over by someone who claimed to be the hacker Cosmo The God, and who posted several tweets to the account about the takeover. Wired reported that Cosmo is a 15-year-old hacker who was arrested in June by the FBI, and who remains on probation until his 21st birthday, before which time he’s not supposed to use a computer without supervision. If it is THE COSMO, I’m saying we cut the kid a break.

I know that the FBI has had its problems with Anonymous but our country has struggled to find ways to curb the Freedom of Speech that Westboro has, in my opinion, abused. It looks to me like Anonymous has found a way to stay off the FBI’s watch list and at the same time harass a group that deserves a bit of harassment. My hope is that the FBI looks the other way on this one.

In other news, the KKK has announced that it will counter the protests of Westboro at military funerals at Arlington National Cemetery. I’m thinking Predator vs. Alien writers will never run out of material.

Post Your Comment

Post Your Reply

Forbes writers have the ability to call out member comments they find particularly interesting. Called-out comments are highlighted across the Forbes network. You'll be notified if your comment is called out.

You are a bunch of mouth breathing dickshits. We will take you down. We are your doctors, friends, co-workers. We are Anonymous. We are legion. We do not forgive, We do not forget. Expect us. We are co– OH WAIT. We’re already HERE.

Know the difference: One is a loosely organized, controversial group of people who target virtually everyone in offensive, but nonviolent attacks, which have financial and sentimental repercussions. The group has been widely criticized by the public since it made headlines a few years ago after undermining the operations of a large company, in spite of falsely believing that they’re working for a righteous cause which will eventually benefit the people.

What I do support is the comparisons you made with both to Alien VS Predator. I couldn’t have thought it better myself. Both groups are equally despicable (spawning their own species of trolls); have posed themselves equal threats to business, society, and human civilization in general; and finally, both will be equally amusing to watch going head to head. Hopefully both groups will be too preoccupied with each other while the rest of us can now worry about neither (at least for the time being).

Thank you Anonymous for doing something against these despicable people. I hope when they go to hell they get it worse then most other people. I’d love to meet up with some of the WBC members while they are picketing. It wouldn’t be peaceful that’s for sure.

Westsboro; This sick, probably Satanic hotbed of criminals, has been violating the lives of innocent families of fallen soldiers and murdered children for too long. The local police in that community should shut the “church” down as a terrorist camp and arrest it’s sick members for criminal trespass on all of the funerals they trashed.